Hundreds flock to 'weeping' Mary statue in Israel

Feb. 11, 2014
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Christian worshipers pray next to a statue of the Virgin Mary that residents say "weeps" oil, inside an apartment belonging to the Khoury family, in Tarshiha, a small town in northern Israel, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2014. / By Ariel Schalit, AP

by USA TODAY

by USA TODAY

JERUSALEM (AP) - Hundreds of people have flocked to a small town in northern Israel to view a statue of the Virgin Mary that residents say "weeps" oil.

Members of a Christian family from Tarshiha, near the Lebanon border, say they have witnessed a miracle in their living room.

Osama Khoury said Tuesday that his wife Amira found the statue "covered with oil" recently. Amira said the statue "spoke to her" and told her not to be afraid. After a neighbor witnessed the oil, word soon spread.

Parts of the statue appear to be slick with moisture, even after it is wiped off.

The family says it is most striking when a "tear" seems to roll down the statue's cheek. It says some 2,000 people have come to see the statue over the last week.

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